


Bows and Beanies

by heyjayyay



Series: Bows and Beanies [1]
Category: Fifth Harmony (Band)
Genre: Camren - Freeform, F/F, Gen, Multi, bows & beanies, bows and beanies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-20
Updated: 2016-02-04
Packaged: 2018-05-18 03:20:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 15,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5896147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heyjayyay/pseuds/heyjayyay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>10 years ago, that wobbly bow was practically the size of her head.<br/>10 years ago, she had to constantly push that beanie out of her eyes.<br/>10 years ago, she met her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Stay in touch!  
> Amazon Author: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B07BB6DFXN  
> Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17449889.Jessica_Yeh  
> Facebook: facebook.com/JessicaYehWrites/  
> 

**Bows and Beanies - Intro.**

10 years ago, that wobbly bow was practically the size of her head.

10 years ago, she had to constantly push that beanie out of her eyes.

10 years ago, she met her.

[Flashback]

“What’s that on your head?” asked a curious little Latina dressed in a pink tutu, hot pink rain boots, sporting a gigantic matching pink bow on her head.

“What’s that on _your_ head?” countered back the green eyed tomboy, bangs slightly covering her face, a beanie threatening to fall off her childish head any second.

“It’s my good luck bow!” the younger girl smiled proudly. “Do you want to try it on?” she asked innocently.

“I never take my beanie off.” Said the older girl, matter-of-factly, pointing to the oversized fabric on her own head.

“Well, if you change your mind, my name is Camila. Not Camilla. Just one L. Do you want to be my friend?” the little one asked, a glimmer of hope in her eye.

“Mine’s Lauren. Also, just one L. Are your parents building a fort?” she asked, as her green eyes settled on a large pile of empty cardboard boxes in her new neighbor’s backyard.

“No…” the girl in pink grinned cheekily, “But we can!” she laughed, grabbing the girl’s hand, causing her to cling to her beanie, as they ran towards the new girl’s house.

_And so it began…_


	2. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 9 years ago, she learned to skateboard.  
> 9 years ago, she was her best friend.

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 1**

_Beanie_

9 years ago, she learned to skateboard.

9 years ago, she was her best friend.

 “Lauren, sweetheart, what do you want to get Camila for her birthday?” the mother asked the five year old holding her hand as they strolled through the mall.

“I know! How about a beanie, just like yours?” her father teased, ruffling the beanie against her head.

“Dad! Stop it!” The feisty child protested, trying to hold her most prized possession in place.

“Come on Mike, let her go.” Clara laughed, hitting her husband playfully.

“Yeah, Dad, let me go!” Lauren copied, hitting her father as well.

“You’re a terrible parent.” Her father laughed, giving his wife the stink eye.

“Says you! I can’t even dress my little girl up without her threatening to go to kindergarten naked.” She teased. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d think we’re raising a son.”

“Let it go, Clara. She just likes me better.” He laughed again.

“I just want to be able to put a bow in her hair once in a while.” Her mother sighed. “Maybe a dress, or some cute little socks with the white lace trim on the sides…” she daydreamed.

The tomboy looked up at her dad, and they both scrunched their noses, sticking their tongues out in disgust.

“Mom?” inquiring green eyes looked up, “Can we go buy a bow?”

“Really?!” her mother’s eyes widened. “Yes, sweetheart! Of course! I’ll buy you a hundred!” Her mother said excited.

“Eww!” She cringed. “Not for me! For Camila!”

“Oh.” Her mother sighed. “Sure. Let’s go.”

“Hey Lo, check that out.” Her father nudged her, pointing to the store window. A sleek black skateboard was sitting in the display. “Want me to teach you?” He whispered, hoping it was quiet enough for his wife not to hear.

“Absolutely.”

So while she endured the torture of her mother trying on every bow she could find on her daughter’s little head, her father snuck off to buy his daughter a skateboard.

\---

_Bow_

9 years ago, she got a new bow.

9 years ago, she was her best friend.

“Feliz cumpleanos, mija” her mother whispered as she kissed her daughter awake. “Are you ready for your party?” she asked.

With that, the little girl’s brown eyes shot open and she jumped out of bed, knocking her mother out of the way.

“Oh boy! Oh boy! I’m so excited!” She squealed, “Which dress should I wear, Mommy?” she asked, throwing open her closet door to reveal a mix of pastel pinks, purples, blues, yellows, and white.

“Whatever you feel prettiest in, Mija” her mother smiled.

“ALL OF THEM!” Her daughter laughed, pulling as many dresses off the hangers as she could. Her mother could only roll her eyes and laugh, as she began to pick up each article that was being flung.

“Mija, you can only wear one dress at a time, silly” she said, “How about we play a game?” she suggested as her daughter nodded her head excitedly. “Close your eyes. I’m going to spin you around and count to 10. Then you have to point and whatever dress you point to, you’ll wear. Ok?”

“Ok!” her daughter beamed, placing two tiny hands over her eyes.

“1, 2, 3…”

\---

_Beanie_

Glowing green eyes sparkled as the neighborhood flew by. Though the only thing separating her backyard from her best friend’s was a giant oak tree that could easily be walked around, she insisted that they walk around the block so that she could show Camila her new skateboard.

“Happy birthday, Camila!” the brunette yelled, brushing past her parents, running inside to her best friend, skateboard quickly forgotten.

“Cool skateboard! I wish I could do that.” The dark haired girl admired, but her thoughts were quickly dismissed as she noticed what her friend was carrying.

“I got this for you! But you can’t open it now! It’s a surprise.” She smiled, handing over the box wrapped in pink and green polka dots.

“Thank you! Do you want to see what my daddy got me for my birthday?” She asked without really caring about the answer. “Come on!” She laughed, pulling the older girl with her, much like she did the first day they met.

“Look! Look!” She pointed, bouncing on her heels.

“It’s wood?” stated the brunette, raising an eyebrow, clearly confused.

“No! Look harder!” the girl urged.

“It’s umm… a lot of wood?” the brunette stated again, adjusting her beanie, more confused than ever.

“No! It’s a tree house!” she squealed giddily. “My daddy said that he would build me a tree house if it was ok with your daddy.”

“Why does my dad decide if you get to have your present or not?” The older girl, still not following.

“Well, Daddy says that the tree in the backyard is right smack in the middle of our houses.” She stated. “So…” she continued. “It’s not your tree. Or my tree. It’s _our_ tree.” She beamed proudly. “We share it.”

“So that means…” The green eyes widened in realization.

“It’ll be your tree house too!” She finished for her.

“Yay! Our very own tree house!” The two laughed, as they joined hands, jumping and singing in circles. “We’re gonna have a tree house. We’re gonna have a tree house!”

“Girls!” Camila’s mother called. “It’s time for the birthday girl to make her wish!”

The girl in the frilly white dress with pink sparkles pulled the older girl in a t-shirt and sneakers out into the backyard.

“Come on! Let’s go! Let’s go!”

The girls ran out as their friends and parents sang happy birthday to the doe eyed girl, before her father hoisted her up onto a chair to blow out the candles.

“What did you wish for?” inquired a pair of green eyes.

“I wished that we’d be bestest friends forever and ever!” Grinned the little Latina, cheekily, quite like the day they first met. Green eyes met brown and the two hugged, squeezing each other tight, like all children do, without a care in the world, with the innocence of childhood floating around them.

The sun began to set as the two finished their second helping of cake. Most parents had scooped up their children, carrying them off toward their respective residence.

“Lauren, it’s time to go, honey.” Her mother called out.

“Yeah, yeah… just a second.” She called back. Even at a young age, she was never really one to listen to her mother.  

“Camila, you should open your present now.” She said, turning her attention back to her friend.

“Ok! Wait here!” She pretended to be stern, wagging a finger, before scampering off to find her gift. She returned a few minutes later with the box. Pink for the princess. Green for the tomboy.

Wrapping paper began to fly, immediately after she plopped herself down beside her friend. Inside, she found a green headband with a green ribbon bow.

“You wear the pink one all the time. It looked like it was getting old.” The tomboy said, pointing to her friend’s head.

“That’s because it’s lucky.” She reminded.

“Maybe this one will be lucky too.” The older girl smiled. “Green’s my favorite color. And four leaf clovers are green. So it has to be lucky.” She reasoned, as if it were the most logical argument in the world.

“Yeah. I think so too.” The newly 5 year old smiled. “Lauren,” she asked, “Do you think you’ll ever wear a lucky bow?”

“Gross.” Green eyes squinted. Her friend’s face fell. She felt bad for her. “Well, maybe one day.”

That was enough to lift her friend’s spirits. The darker haired girl launched herself at her friend, knocking her over, before giving her the tightest hug she could.

“I have to go home now.” Lauren said sadly. “But we can play tomorrow!” She assured her younger friend.

“And we can play the next day!” Camila added.

“And the next day after _that_!” The green-eyed girl called, as her mother approached, gently grabbing her hand to walk her daughter home.

“And the next day after _that_!” Her friend called after her.

“And the next day after _that_!” She returned, as they got further and further away.

_And the next day, they did just that…_

_  
_


	3. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 8 years ago, she didn’t have to take naps anymore.
> 
> 8 years ago, they had their own tree house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 2**

8 years ago, she didn’t have to take naps anymore.

8 years ago, they had their own tree house.

It was the last day of summer. The two were sitting across from each other in their safe haven, surrounded by pictures they had colored together, pillows, the older girl’s skateboard, leaning against the wall, and the younger girl’s Barbies lined in a row on the window sill. They had just spent the afternoon in the kiddie pool their parents had placed in the middle of their backyards, under the shade of the large oak tree.

“So, what’s school like?” asked a pair of curious brown, doe eyes as she paused from coloring her picture of a Lisa Frank kitten.

“You’ve been to school!” The tomboy laughed, looking up from her green and orange dinosaur she had filled in (a little more neatly than the younger girl with less motor control.) Her eyes narrowed, pierced with concentration as she carefully began to color the T-Rex.

“But not for a full day!” the younger girl whined. “Is it fun?”

“Lots of fun!” The older girl nodded. “They teach us how to do math with candy!” she continued. “And guess what!” she waited expectantly.

“What?”” Her friend asked excitedly.

“We don’t have nap time!”

“No way!” her eyes widened in disbelief, jaw dropping.

“Yes way!” she continued. “And when I went to first grade, I got a nickname!” the tomboy stated proudly.

“Wowwww,” the younger girl sighed in admiration before asking in a hopeful tone, “Can I have one?”

“Well… umm…” the tomboy thought hesitantly, adjusting her beanie. “What do you wanna be called?”

“I don’t know. I don’t really know what a nickname is?”

“Well, you give someone a nickname if you really like them.”

“So if you’re my best friend,” the younger girl reasoned. “And I really like you… I should give you a nickname too.” She smiled. “How about Princess Lolo the Bestest Skateboarder in the whole wide world?”

The skater scrunched up her nose at the word “princess.” “No way! Besides, nicknames are supposed to be short.”

“Oh. Well, then how about just Lolo?” the younger girl proposed.

“Ok! And you can be Camz!”

\---  
_Bows_

The little girl in a frilly lavender tutu with sparkling ballet shoes skipped care freely across her backyard, knocking lightly on the neighbor’s back door.

A few moments later, her best friend came rushing through the doorway, one hand holding her beanie from slipping, the other grabbing a green and black checker print backpack.

“Let’s go!” She smiled, pulling the girlier one toward the bus stop, her mother following a few steps behind.

It was the first time they would be riding the bus together. The previous year, Camila was in the PM kindergarten class. She would wake up every morning, and frantically wave goodbye to Lauren from her window across the yards, before going back to sleep.

In the afternoon, their parents would switch off picking the two up from school. But this year, they had each other to ride to and from school with. On a real school bus!

“Have a great day, girls!” Sinuhe waved, as a she watched the pink bookbag disappear onto the bus.

The skater made her way to the very front of the 2nd grade seats, and her friend sat at the back of the 1st grade section.

“How come I can’t sit with you?” the younger girl turned around, kneeling on the seat to look over the back at her friend.

“I dunno.” The girl with the beanie shrugged, completely slouched down, her knees resting on the seat in front of her, looking up at her friend. “Those are the rules.”

“This is dumb.” The girl with the green bow pouted before plopping back down into her seat, looking out the window, watching the houses go by, only turning when she felt the presence of another person next to her.

“Hi.” The green eyed girl smiled.

“You’re gonna get in trouble!” The younger girl whispered.

“I won’t tell if you won’t.” the older girl smiled, holding out a pinky.

“Deal.” The two linked pinkies and enjoyed the rest of the ride to their elementary school.

\---   
_Beanie_

8 years ago, she broke the rules.

8 years ago, they had their own tree house.

The green eyed girl was perched atop the monkey bars, the warm August air blowing her long wavy hair. She watched as her best friend sat alone on the swing with her head down, kicking at the dirt. First and second graders had recess together, but were supposed to stay in their designated playground areas. The first graders’ playground was practically on the other side of the parking lot.

The little girl sighed. No one wanted to play. One boy even said her bow was stupid. Another said it didn’t match her outfit. Even the teachers didn’t like her. She got in trouble for talking. But it wasn’t her fault Mrs. Smith was boring. And then she made her sit in time out. The first day of school wasn’t any fun. Worst of all, she wasn’t allowed to play with Lauren.

“Camz!” She heard someone call her name. The little princess looked up to see the skater running toward her, as well as Mrs. Smith, blowing her whistle.

“Back to your playground” Mrs. Smith pointed at the green eyed girl who simply shook her head in refusal, taking a seat next to her friend on the swings.

“Camila, tell your friend that she has to stay on her playground.” The woman warned. “Or you will both be going to the wall.”

The younger girl began to cry, twisting her tutu in her hands, nervously.

“1…” her teacher began to count.

“But I wanna play with Lolo.” She whined.

“2…” her voice raised.

“3” she sighed, “Let’s go” she said, grabbing both girls by the hand, leading them to the wall. “Sit here until the rest of recess is over.”

 The woman didn’t stay long. A few minutes later, she was running after the same boy that had called the younger girl’s bow stupid. Apparently he had thrown a rock at another boy.

“Don’t cry, Camz. I get time outs all the time,” she assured her friend.

“You do?” She sniffed, wiping her tears with the back of her hand.

“Yeah! Mrs. Smith is a mean old lady.” She stated, pretending to hobble with a cane causing the younger girl to burst out into a fit of laughter.

“Do more! Do more!” She laughed, clapping her hands.

“Get on your side” the beanied girl continued to mock as her friend continued to laugh. “See, time out’s not that bad.”

The younger girl nodded. “And now we get to play.”

“Yeah!” The other girl smiled back, joining her friend to sit Indian style across from her. “Let’s get time out every day!” suggested the older girl, mischievously.

“Deal.” And for the second time that day, the two linked pinkies and enjoyed the rest of their recess.

 

 


	4. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 7 years ago, she wasn’t afraid of the dark anymore.  
> 7 years ago, she had her first sleepover.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 3**

7 years ago, she wasn’t afraid of the dark anymore.

7 years ago, she had her first sleepover.

_Bow_

A little girl, dressed in pink, silk bunny pajamas and matching slippers scampered quickly up the ladder of the tree house, while her father trailing closely behind lugging a sleeping bag and stuffed hippo.

“Careful, Mija” he warned, watching her daughter ascend. She slipped slightly, before regaining her composure, adjusting the bow on her head that she had slowly begun to grow into. When fully situated, she reached down to grab her belongings from her father before thanking him, waving from the window as he returned to the house.

It was their first sleepover. Lauren’s parents were going out of town for the weekend and asked the Cabellos to babysit their daughter, to which they happily agreed. The youngest Cabello suggested a sleepover, to which they also happily agreed.

Her friend arrived less than a minute after, skillfully grasping onto the rope swing with one hand, holding her beanie with the other, before swinging over to the ladder, allowing her to skip the first few steps. Her father tossed her sleeping bag up, which she caught with ease. She always was the sporty one. He then handed her overnight bag to his neighbor, thanked him, and rejoined his wife in the driveway. The two girls waved as the car sped off.

“You two alright for the night?” Sinuhe called up to her daughter and her beanied best friend.

“Yes!” They nodded.

“Ok, don’t stay up too late! Mr. Cabello and I will be just inside the house if you need anything.” She said, “Mija, are you sure you don’t need me to bring your…”

“Mommy! You’re embarrassing me.” Her daughter whined.

“Alright, goodnight girls! Sleep tight!” She waved, before blowing a kiss to each, the 6 year old first, then the 7.

When her mother was out of sight, the young girl turned to her friend.

“What do you wanna do first?” she asked, bright eyes glistening with excitement.

“I dunno.” Her friend shrugged. “What do people do at sleepovers?”

“Well…” the younger girl tapped her chin. “On TV, they always talk about boys.”

“What about boys?” The brunette raised an eyebrow.

“I dunno.” This time it was the younger girl’s turn to shrug.

“I think boys are dumb.” The older girl finally stated after a minute of pondering.

“I think boys smell.” She giggled, pretending to pinch her nose.

“Cooties!” The skater girl laughed, pretending to be repulsed.

The night continued with the two friends talking about school, their favorite cartoon characters, coloring and more. Finally, the older girl rubbed her eyes and yawned.

“I’m sleepy.” She stated. “Do you want to go to bed?”

“I’m not even tired.” The younger girl lied, stifling a yawn herself.

“Suit yourself. I’m gonna sleep.” Her friend shrugged, unzipping her green sleeping bag, before crawling in and snuggling up to her pillow.

“Fine.” The darker hair girl pouted, taking her bow out, setting it aside before muttering a quick “baby” at her friend.

“Am not.” Her friend shot back.

“Are too.” She whispered back, climbing into her own sleeping bag.

“Am not.” The older girl whispered, not really bothering to argue anymore.

“What was that?” the younger girl sat up, suddenly alert. “Lolo, wake up.” She nudged her best friend.

“Camila…” The older girl muttered, “Go back to sleep.”

The sun had finally set and the night was dark. The moon had begun to cast shadowy figures on the walls of their haven.

“Lolo, I’m scared.” The younger girl whimpered, clinging tightly to her stuffed hippo. The older girl tried to ignore the girl, but when she heard sniffling from beside her, she immediately sat up.

“It’s ok, Camz.” She tried to comfort. “There’s nothing to be scared of.” She promised, grabbing a hold of the girl’s pink fingernail painted hand.

“But I heard…” She panicked.

“It’s just the wind.” Her friend cut her off.

“But then I saw…” She tried to explain.

“Come on.” Her friend said, pulling her up, leading her to the window. “See? It’s just the moon making scary shadows. It’s not really scary.” She pointed from the moon to the tree branches to the figures dancing on the walls.

“Lolo, can you keep a secret?” The younger girl asked, embarrassed.

“Pinky promise.” The older girl answered confidently, holding out her pinky for the other girl to take.

“I sleep with a nightlight. I don’t like this. It’s too dark. And scary.” She blushed.

The older girl thought for a minute.

“You know what my dad said to your dad when they were making our tree house?” she asked the younger girl.

“What’d he say?” Asked a curious pair of brown eyes, glistening in the dim light.

“He said,” continued the older girl “that this was going to be the safest tree house ever.”

“He really said that?” the girl in pink asked, her eyes, hopeful.

“Yeah.” The older girl nodded. “And my dad doesn’t lie.” She assured.

“Plus, we have a bajillion night lights here!” She smiled, pointing at the sky. “Just look! Every single star is a nightlight in an alien’s bedroom far, far away.” She explained.

“Wowwwwwwwww” The younger girl said in awe.

“Let’s go back to bed.” The older girl proposed, making her way back to their nest of sleeping bags, blankets, and pillows.

“Hey Lolo?” the younger girl asked, as they settled in.

“Hmm?” the older girl responded groggily, not bothering to turn over.

“I think it’s funny that you sleep with your beanie on.” She giggled.

“Goodnight, Camz.” The older girl rolled her eyes, curling into her sleeping bag.

“Goodnight, Lolo.” The princess whispered, kissing her friend’s cheek, before snuggling into her own bag.

Both girls fell asleep in the safest tree house ever, with smiles on their faces.


	5. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 6 years ago, she rode her first rollercoaster.  
> 6 years ago they had their first fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 4**

6 years ago, she rode her first rollercoaster.

6 years ago they had their first fight.

_Bow_

The two best friends were old enough to go to day camp now. And today was Friday, more specifically, Fieldtrip Friday. This Friday, the counselors were going to takes them to Six Flags. To say the girls were excited would be an understatement.

But things weren’t quite going as expected.

“Come on you baby! It’s just a roller coaster.”  The blond haired boy sneered, poking the youngest girl.

“Keaton, what’s your problem?” The older girl countered, stepping in front of her friend. “She’s scared.”

“Yeah, like a big baby!” He continued to tease. “I bet you’re scared too! Why don’t you get on the ride?” He egged, stepping forward.

“I am not!” She huffed, positioning herself directly in front of the boy. The two stood nose to nose, glaring at each other before he looked away from her piercing green eyes. The tomboy rolled her eyes, trudging to the gate.

“Lolo, don’t leave me.” Her friend whined.

The older girl looked over to see the rest of the boys snickering at them. Toughening up, she yelled “Why do you have to be such a baby all the time?” before stomping on the platform, seating herself in the first car as her friend watched with sad eyes from behind the gate. She could see tears begin to form in younger girl’s eyes, bottom lip trembling. Quickly turning away, she avoided her gaze, and sat impossibly quiet for the entire ride, despite the screams of excitement and fear that rung out around her.

_Why was she trying to impress them? Didn’t she say she didn’t like boys? She wasn’t quite sure._

The ride ended sooner than she expected. She followed the group of boys hooting over how awesome and fast the coaster was. The older girl caught her friend sulking behind, the bounce in her step gone. She sighed, keeping her gaze to the ground.

“Little girl, would you like to play?” a carnie called out to her. The little bow lifted, her innocent face lighting up for a mere second when she caught a glimpse of a floral giraffe stuffed animal. She stood for a bit too long, noticing that the group was still moving, reluctantly scampering back, out of fear of being left behind.

The beanied girl quickly ran ahead to one of the counselors, whispering in her ear before being escorted to the booth as the rest of the campers continued on, led by yet another member of the camp staff.

The bell rang and the carnie nodded, impressed. Who knew a little girl could pitch like that? To his surprise, she pointed to the floral giraffe, which he handed over with a congratulatory smile. Why didn’t she pick out the BB gun? Or skateboard? It didn’t quite fit her personality, what with the black Chuck Taylors and dark green beanie she sported.

The skater sprinted her way back to the group, with the counselor following close behind. Tapping the shoulder of the girl with the pastel skirt, she brought the giraffe out from behind her back, offering it to her friend, whose eyes nearly doubled in size.

“I’m sorry.” The beanied girl apologized, her green eyes begging for forgiveness.

“I’m sorry too.” The younger girl said, her eyes softening to a warm brown.

“Why are you sorry?” She asked, taken aback.

“I’m not cool like you.” The younger girl blushed. “I’m a baby.”

“No you’re not.” She comforted. “You’re my best friend.” She smiled lightly, “Are you still my best friend?” She asked hesitantly, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Of course” The younger girl beamed, holding her arms out. The skater stepped closer, wrapping her arms around her friend.

“Good.” She smiled, giving the shorter girl a quick kiss on the head.

\---

 “What’s its name?” teased the blond boy’s sidekick, Wes, as they sat down at one of the picnic tables.

“Puppy.” The girl smiled proudly, taking a bite of her pizza.

“That’s a stupid name.” He snickered, causing the girl’s smile to instantly fall. Suddenly, she wasn’t very hungry anymore.

“Dude, back off.” The older girl warned. “I think it’s a good name” she assured, placing a hand on her shoulder, before sitting down next to her friend with her fries in hand.  “Do you want some?” She offered.

“No thanks.” The younger girl shook her head, obviously still hurt about the boy’s previous comment.

The older girl sighed, before smirking at her friend. She had an idea. Grabbing a ketchup covered fry, she swiped it across her cheek before crying out. “Help! I’m bleeding! Ahh!!” She screamed, pretending to make a scene. The camp counselors at the end of the table looked over, alert, before realizing she was pretending, turning their attention back to themselves. “Camz! Please! Help me!” She cried, clutching her heart with one hand, tugging the girl’s arm with the other. The younger girl rolled her eyes and fought back a smile. The beanied girl took that has her cue to start tickling her.

“Lolooo” she giggled. “Stop it!” She wiggled, trying to escape her friend’s grip, fingers racing up and down her sides.

“There’s the smile I was looking for” Her friend beamed, wiping the ketchup from her face. The rest of the day went much better than it began.

\---

The two stood in line with the rest of the group of campers. Each lined in pairs. The beanie stood faithfully by the bow. Two blond boys stood behind them, whispering harsh words but the older girl gave her a quick smile, encouraging her to ignore them.

The gates finally opened, each pair scrambling to find a car.

The taller girl made her way to the driver’s seat, about to climb in before she felt a smaller hand place itself on her own. “I want to drive.” The younger girl said. The taller girl hesitated.

“Camz, are you sure?” She raised in eyebrow.

“Definitely.” She said with determination.

Her tongue stuck between her lips, her eyes narrowing as she plowed through, full speed, slamming their car into the boys. She was determined and she was ruthless. There was only one target and she was going spend the next 3 minutes hitting it as many times as possible.

“I didn’t think you had it in you.” The older girl laughed when the cars finally slowed to a stop. The two blonds approached them but surprisingly, both girls stood their ground.

“You know, you’re alright, Camila.” The older boy nodded.

“Hey, you guys wanna go on the Monster?” The little girl suggested, earning a surprised look from 3 pairs of eyes.

“Are you sure?” The older girl asked again.

“Definitely.” She said again with the same amount of determination as before.

Squeezing her hand encouragingly, the older girl lead the four to the same roller coaster ¾ of them had ridden previously that day.

\---

The skater girl stretched, exhausted before looking out her window to see her best friend tucking the giraffe into bed, kissing it softly on the head. Chuckling, she grabbed her flashlight from her desk, flickering it on and off in the direction of the girl’s bedroom. The younger girl looked up at the brightness flashing on her pink walls before disappearing, only to reappear a few seconds later holding a walkie-talkie to her lips.

“Hi Lolo.” She said, waving at the girl in the room across from her own.

“Hi.” She replied, sitting cross legged on her bed, still facing her window.

“What’s up?” The younger girl asked.

“Did you have fun today?” The older girl asked.

“Yeah!” She nodded, taking her bow out of her hair as she continued to get ready for bed.

“I’m glad you came on The Monster with me.” Her friend continued, watching her friend scurry around the room in and out of sight.

“Me too.” She smiled. “Well, I’m all set for bed.”

“Ok, goodnight.” She waved.

“Goodnight, Lolo.” The younger girl blew a kiss, turning off the light in her room. The skater watched as the red “on” button of the walkie-talkie made its way across the room to what was obviously Camila’s bed.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” The younger muttered, sleepily.

“Of course.” The older girl promised.

“Treehouse?” She asked, lazily.

“Treehouse.” Her friend confirmed.


	6. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 5 years ago, she went to the hospital.  
> 5 years ago, she took care of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 5**

5 years ago, she went to the hospital.

5 years ago, she took care of her.

_Bow_

The little Latina shot up from bed, awakened by a startling scream.

“Alejandro!” she heard her mother call. “Alejandro, ven aqui!” She heard her mother call out in angry distress.

Something inside the young girl knew that her life was about to change in that moment.

Before she could even process any more, her bedroom door was practically thrown open, her father scooping her up, running down the stairs before quickly buckling her into the backseat of the car. She could see the beads of sweat forming on her mother’s forehead as she panted an unsteady rhythm.

There was beeping and pacing, accompanied with the occasional rattle of what sounded similar to a shopping cart. Her sleepy brown eyes followed as her father tracked back and forth in the waiting room, his eyes counting the tiles _. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, turn. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, turn._

“Mr. Cabello?” A woman in blue scrubs addressed. Her father looked up, his expression frozen. It scared her a little bit. “Would you like to meet your new daughter?”

Her face lit up as her father quickly grabbed her hand, following the nurse who ushered them into the room. Her mother, exhausted, was lying in a light pink gown, a small bundle in her arms. She stood hesitantly near the door as her father made his way to his wife’s bedside.

“Mija, meet your baby sister, Sofia.” Sinuhe smiled, waving her free hand, signaling for the princess to come over.

“Are you going to be a good big sister?” Her mother asked, her tone much gentler than it had been earlier that night when she had called out in pain.

Her daughter could only nod.

“Your little sister is very special.” Her mother continued. “We have to make sure to take care of the people who are special to us.” She lectured, not really sure if her daughter would understand the great responsibility this new child would add to her life. She was about to become the older Cabello now.

“Will you help us take care of her?” Her father asked.

She nodded again, giving both parents a reassuring smile.

“I promise.” She assured, crossing her heart, making an ‘X’ with her pointer finger over her chest.

\---

_Beanie_

Normally it was the older girl who took care of her younger friend. But when she came back after being away for 2 days, with a green cast on her arm, the tables turned.

“Lolo!” Brown eyes widened, as she finally managed to get herself off the ladder, approaching her friend who was sitting on the tire swing, holding on with her un-bandaged hand. “What happened to you?” she asked, pointing to the harsh material that now encompassed her friend’s left arm.

“Keaton dared me to do a 360 kick flip off the edge of the bowl.” Her friend shrugged before adding, “I didn’t make it.”

The younger girl’s eyebrow raised, her bow following suit of her head that was now tilted in confusion.

The brunette stifled a laugh. “I broke it skateboarding.” She explained in simpler terms.

“Oh.” The darker haired girl frowned. “Does it hurt?”

She shook her head. “Not anymore. But it did! You should’ve seen it! I could see my bone!” The tomboy rambled enthusiastically as her friend’s eyes widened in horror.

“You’re so brave, Lolo.” She admired. “Did you cry?” She asked. Her friend’s enthusiasm remained unfazed.

“No! But you should’ve seen Wes’s face!” She slapped her knee. “Oh! And their little sister, Bea! Her face! She looked like she was gonna throw up!” She laughed.

“Wowwww.” The younger girl said in astonishment.

“Lauren,” called a voice from the backdoor. The two looked up, slightly startled. “What are you doing?” Clara berated. “Get down from there!” Her mother lectured. “You could hurt yourself. The doctor said…”

“I know.” The older girl rolled her eyes before carefully slipping herself out from the tire swing, winking at her friend, before pretending to trip, causing her mother to lurch forward in a frantic attempt to catch her daughter. The beanied girl quickly recomposed herself before she let out a boisterous laugh. “Gotcha.” She smirked.

“Not funny, Lauren.” Her mother scolded, placing her hands on her hips. “You need to be careful.”

“Mommmmm!” She groaned, rubbing her free hand over her face in frustration. “I’m not a baby! I _know_!”

“It’s ok, Mama Jauregui.” The younger girl, who up until now had remained quiet, piped up. “I’ll take care of her.”

“Oh yeah?” Clara’s eyebrow raised in amusement.

“Yeah! Mami said to take care of the people that are special to you.” She stated matter-of-factly. “And Papi says I’m doing a good job taking care of Sofi. I’m sure I can take care of Lolo too.” She smiled, innocently.  

“Well then, Camila…” the skater’s mother smirked. “I have a task for you.” She grinned at her daughter. _Oh boy. Here is comes._

“I need Lauren to catch up on her homework that she missed when she was in the hospital. Can you help me convince her to do it?” Her mother grinned as her daughter’s jaw dropped. _She did not just do that._

“Umm…” Her friend hesitated. She shook her head violently ‘no,’ pleading for her not to side with her own mother.

“Camila, you said you’d help me.” Clara probed, clearly amused at the younger girl’s conflicted face.

“Umm,” her brown eyes shifting between her best friend and the clear holder of authority. “Lolo, do you want to do homework?” She mumbled, nervously. “Your Mami kinda says you have to.”

Before she could answer, her mother let out a chuckle. “I’ll grab your book bag. You can do it on the porch.” She continued. The two made their way over to the few stairs that led to the Jauregui’s white painted porch, the younger girl settling herself in, leaning against the banister while the older girl sat by her side, propping her elbow on her knee, chin in hand.

A few seconds later, her mother reappeared holding her black and green checkered backpack. Over the years, she had grown into it, much like her beanie. The colors, beginning to fade, and imperfections in the stitching and fabric were becoming more and more obvious.

The older girl reached out with her abled hand, muttering an ungrateful “thanks” before sighing, struggling to unzip the bag to retrieve her books.

“Here, Lolo. Let me help you.” The little girl smiled, holding the edges of the bag with her hands, allowing her friend to pull the zipper easier. She could have just opened it for her, but she knew this was more a matter of pride than anything. The older girl was never one to depend on others.

“Thanks, Camz.” She whispered before shuffling through her things, taking out a copy of her _The Phantom Tollbooth._

“Read with me.” She requested with a slightly embarrassed blush as she struggled to open the book to the correct page, unable to hold the pages open with her one hand. The younger girl simply smiled and nodded before grabbing the edge of the book with her left hand, her friend taking hold of the book with her right.

After an hour of reading together, the older girl would read one page out loud, followed by the younger girl as they would switch off, the tomboy was finally all caught up with her reading assignments.

“Hey Camz?” the skater asked when they had finished.

“Hmm?” The younger girl said, her mind in a peaceful state, simply enjoying the quiet.

“Will you be the first person to sign my cast?” she inquired.

“I’d love to!” The younger girl smiled. The other girl reached into the front pocket of her bag, digging for a Sharpie.

“Here ya go!” She smiled, handing the black marker to her friend who beamed, gently taking her friend’s injured arm, propping it on her knees and uncapped the marker.

“You can’t look!” She giggled, lightly pushing her friend’s cheek to turn her head away.

“Fine.” The other girl huffed. After a few minutes, she heard the sound of the marker being recapped with a quick ‘pop.’

“I have to go home for dinner now.” The younger girl said, before removing the skater’s arm from her lap, before quickly kissing her cheek, hustling back to her own yard.

The tomboy sighed as she looked down at the green cast, once blank, and saw that it was over 1/3 written on with big, bubbly handwriting.

_Lolo,_

_You’re so brave, but you should be more careful when you skateboard next time. You’re special to me so I promise to take care of you until you get better. Hurry up and get well soon so you can climb and we can go up to the treehouse. C+L=4Ever!_

_-Camz_ _♥_

The skater chuckled. “You’re special to me too.” She whispered to herself.


	7. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 4 years ago, she looked differently.  
> 4 years ago, she looked at her differently.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 6**

4 years ago, she looked differently.

4 years ago, she looked at her differently.

_Bow_

The younger Latina sat quietly in the bleachers, a book in hand with her sunglasses perched on the bridge of her nose as her eyes rapidly scanned over each word. Sports were never really her thing, but the Jaureguis had invited her and her family to the game. Her parents thought it would be a nice occasion to get the family out of the house, especially while trying to care for a little one. It would be a good way to relax.

She glanced over at her parents, sitting on a picnic blanket, Sofia crawling between them, giggling happily. Her attention was brought back to the game when her best friend’s family members stood up and began cheering.

“You’ve got this, Lo!” Mike shouted.

“Go, Laur!” a little tike cheered alongside her older brother.

“Lauren’s up to bat.” Clara smiled, placing a hand on the girl’s shoulder, pointing out her best friend standing at the home plate. She almost didn’t recognize her. She wasn’t wearing a beanie. It was the first time she’d seen her look so differently. Instead of long locks cascading down her shoulder, they were pulled back into a low ponytail, her normal Converse replaced with a pair of cleats. A button up uniform took the place of the baggy t-shirt she normally wore. Despite it all, under that helmet, she could see two green gems. She knew those eyes anywhere.

The younger girl could only watch in awe. Her best friend was simply amazing.

“Yay, Lolo!” She cheered. The girl shot her a smile before returning her attention back to the pitcher.

\---

The brunette could see the heat waves rising, causing the orange sand to almost wiggle. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she glared with determination at the enemy. She quickly glanced at the girl’s stance, estimating the speed and direction of the pitch before taking a deep breath, swinging her arms with all her might.

_Crack._

The ball went soaring through the air. She threw the bat out of sight, shooting towards first base. From the corner of her eye she could see the rest of her teammates making their way around the diamond. One. Two. Three. The other team was in a frantic scramble. This was her chance. She continued running, adrenaline pumping. She could see the other team closing in, a white ball inching closer and closer to her. She dove.

Home run! They won the game and the crowd went wild as parents rushed onto the field.

“Good job, Lolo!” the younger girl beamed.

“Thank you.” She smiled, removing her helmet.

“You’re amazing.” Her friend complimented.

“You too.” She blushed.

“I didn’t even do anything.” She giggled.

“Whatever.” She rolled her eyes half-heartedly. “The team is going to have a pool party tomorrow to celebrate. Do you want to come with me?”

\---

_Beanie_

She never noticed how shiny Camila’s hair was. Or how it cascaded down her back. She never noticed much her brown eyes glowed in the sun. Or even the way her nose would scrunch up when she smiled too hard.

To be honest, she wished she had more time to observe these things about her friend. Yes, they hung out in the tree house every day after school, but most of the time it was only so they could do homework together before dinner or practice. It also didn’t help that middle schoolers get out at a different time than the elementary schoolers. And school started at a different time.

Every morning the skater would wake up at 6 AM, almost an hour before her friend needed to be awake. By the time the younger girl stirred in her sleep, the tomboy was already halfway to school, gliding the 6 blocks down the street on her trusty board.

 A cool liquid brought her out of her daze. She looked up to see the darker hair girl grinning mischievously.

“I’m gonna get you now, Camz!” She laughed, tossing her clothes aside before jumping into the pool, cannonballing right in front of the younger girl, soaking her with the splash.

“SO COLD!” She squealed, shivering.

“It’s not _that_ bad.” The older girl laughed. “Come in!” She continued, splashing a bit more at her friend, sitting at the edge of the pool with a zip up hoodie over her.

“No.” Her friend pretended to pout, sticking her tongue out.

“Camila Cabello, if you don’t get in here now, I will pull you in!” She threatened jokingly. The younger girl sighed, hesitantly unzipping her cover up, revealing a pink and purple bikini top.

“Wow.” The older girl muttered under her breath before clearing her throat. “No more one pieces?” She teased causing her friend to blush.

“No. Mami said I was old enough now.” The younger girl explained. “I know it’s kinda different.” She mumbled as her cheeks began to turn an even brighter shade of pink.

“Nothing wrong with different.” The older girl said with an encouraging smile.

Before the girly girl could answer, they were interrupted by high-pitched scream.

“Marco Polo!” A dark skinned girl called out before jumping into the pool, followed by the rest of the 6th grade softball team.

Suddenly, the younger girl found herself alone as her friend was dunked underwater by the team, piling playfully on top of her.

“Since Lauren hit the winning homerun, I think she should go first.” The girl announced, receiving hoots of approval from the rest of the girls.

The younger girl watched in amusement as her friend arose to the surface, both laughing and choking on the chlorine water.

“Come on, MVP!” The girl cheered, pushing her teammate toward the center of the pool.

“Bring it, Kordei!” the tomboy challenged, closing her eyes as she began to count. Camila, who was unsure if she was included in the softball team’s game simply slipped into the pool and observed the scene before her.

“Marco!” Her friend finally called out, arms outstretched. A chorus of “polos” rung out around her. She took a few steps forward and called out yet again.

“Marco!” She called again.

“Polos” scattered themselves around her. One in particular stood out to her. It was a ‘polo’ that hadn’t been spoken before coming from a voice was just a little more familiar than the rest, despite the fact that it was indeed the quietest one.

The brunette took a few more steps towards the younger girl’s voice, smirking.

“Marco.” She said again, waiting for the young Latina’s response amongst the rest of voices. _Nothing._

Taking a leap of faith, the skater took three steps to her left, her hands making contact with something, or rather someone. The connection was instant. Emerald eyes fluttered open to meet a pool of chocolate brown.

“Hey, Camz.” She grinned, cheekily.

“How’d you…” The younger girl was lost for words, mouth agape.

The taller girl just smiled, gesturing between the two. “Best friends.” She said simply.

“I think we should call you Marco Lolo.” Her friend giggled.

\---

The duo lounged lazily in the sun, two pool chairs pushed together as they watched the softball team continue their antics. The pastel princess tapped her feet to an imaginary beat as the tomboy attempted to comb her fingers through her long, still wet hair.

“Ugh. I wish I had my beanie.” She groaned in frustration, her hand getting caught in another knot.

“Here.” The younger girl giggled, reaching over. “Let me.” She smiled, scooting closer, situating herself Indian style behind her friend. Her smaller hands reached out, removing her friends’ from the brown locks as she slowly began to comb her hair. Her pink fingernails gently unlaced any remaining difficulties. “You know, Lolo, I like you without your beanie.”

“Thanks.” The tomboy mumbled.

“I mean, I like you with your beanie too.” She quickly corrected herself, afraid she may have offended the older girl.

“I know.” The softball player laughed.

The younger girl began to play with the soft, freshly combed hair, dividing it into three sections, crossing one over the other.

“You’re really pretty, Lolo.” She admired when she was done. “Even if you don’t like to wear dresses or bows.”

“Eww. Never.” The brunette laughed, scrunching up her nose causing the younger girl to join in. “That’s your job.”

“You don’t ever want to be girly?” She questioned innocently.

“No way.” She said firmly, shaking her head for emphasis.

“Laur, your hair looks nice!” Normani smiled from the pool, giving her a thumbs up. The skater waved back before returning her attention back to the younger girl who had finished braiding her hair.

“Actually, there is one thing…” She said, eyes downcast nervously.

\---

The store was too pink. So. Much. Pastel. The tomboy inwardly cringed. She’s always admired Camila’s hoop earrings, but never dared to ask her mother to take her to get her own pierced. She knew it would be like opening Pandora’s Box of girly pink vomit. _No thank you._

So it came as no surprise that the tomboy had asked her father to take her instead. Of course, Clara was extremely excited when she got the news, which is why she was not allowed to come. Her husband burst out laughing when his daughter stubbornly forbade his wife to come along.

Her father and best friend watched supportively as she climbed onto the purple chair of the Claire’s piercing station.

“Do you want me to hold your hand?” Brown orbs asked, offering a hand. The older girl smiled, lacing their fingers appreciatively.

“What color would you like?” the lady asked, holding a case of little stud earrings.

“Those.” She said pointing with her free hand at a pair of metallic emerald studs.

“Perfect.” The woman smiled, opening the cabinet nearby, taking out a new pair and some other contraptions. “I just need to clean your ears and then you’ll be all set.” She explained, reaching out to move the brunette’s hair aside. “Sweetheart, could you take off your beanie?” She asked with kind eyes.

The skater hesitated.

“Go on, Lolo.” The smaller girl encouraged. “It’s ok.” 

The tomboy sighed, removing her lucky beanie, tossing her hair over her shoulders. The younger girl shot her another motivational smile, giving her hand a quick squeeze.

“Thank you, hun. This will just pinch a bit.” She assured, quickly clicking the gun into the young girl’s left ear. “Wow, you didn’t even flinch.” She approved. “One more time.” She said, repeating the same action as before on her other right ear.

The younger girl beamed at her friend as the lady handed her a mirror. The studs looked great. Edgy, but definitely not girly.

“Let’s get you girls home.” Mike said after they had wrapped up, thanking the employee, paying for the earrings. “Sleepover tonight.” He reminded. Not that they could forget. It was their favorite day of the week.

As if on cue the two held hands, sprinting towards the parking lot.

\---

Puppy rested in the skater’s lap as the two sat across from each other in the safest tree house ever. She had spent the night tossing and turning, unable to get comfortable due to the throbbing pain coming from her ears.

“You can keep Puppy until you feel better.” The younger girl insisted.

“No. Puppy’s yours. I got him for you.” She argued back.

“But Lolo…” The princess whined. “You didn’t even cry.”

“Which is why I don’t need him.” She persisted.

“But…” The younger girl frowned.

“Fine.” She rolled her eyes. “We’ll share him.”

“How do we do that?” The darker haired girl asked, brows knit in confusion.

“Like this.”  She said, gesturing for her friend to do as she did. They both unzipped their sleeping bags. The skater handed the giraffe over to her friend as she continued to build them a nest of blankets and pillows, placing her sleeping bag on the floor of the treehouse before placing the bowed girl’s sleeping bag on top.

“Come here.” She instructed, crawling between the layers, patting the space next to her. The younger girl seemed to understand as she nestled into the layers, placing Puppy in between them, before snuggling even closer to the beanied girl.

“Lolo?” The younger girl questioned, her eyes carefully watching her friend whose eyes were shut, two hands resting behind her head.

“Hmm?” she mumbled, raising an eyebrow, still not bothering to actually open her eyes.

“Nothing.” The princess blushed. “You just look really pretty now.” She whispered, her eyes falling to her friend’s newly pierced ears, the metal stud sparkling in the light of the moon. Her eyes travelled to the girls nose, lips, and across her jawline.

“I don’t do pretty.” She mumbled.

“I know.” The younger girl giggled. But she was. _So very pretty._

As the two drifted off to sleep the older girl let out one final sigh, rolling over to face her friend.

“Thanks, Camz. You’re pretty too.” She whispered, kissing the girl’s cheek before finally falling asleep. 


	8. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 years ago, she thought she was ugly.  
> 3 years ago, she thought she was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 7**

3 years ago, she thought she was ugly.

3 years ago, she thought she was perfect.

_Beanie_

The summer vacation seemed to disappear and before she knew it, she was back at school again, hanging out in lobby by her locker with her skate crew.

“WHOA! Who _is_ that?” her friend hooted obnoxiously towards the entrance.

The brunette squinted toward the doorway as her vision focused on the figure moving down the hall before answering “That’s Camila.” She said nonchalantly.

“Wait you know her?” He said in disbelief. The girl simply nodded before giving a quick wave to the girl across the hall that had spotted her older friend with a group of guys.

“Introduce me, dude!” her friend nudged her arm. “I would love to get a piece of that.”

“Eww, Harry. Eww.” She scrunched up her nose, causing the boys to laugh.

“Does it seriously still bug you when I talk about girls?” He rolled his eyes.

“She’s not just any girl.” The green eyed girl muttered. “She’s my best friend.”

“Hold up!” He said astonished, “Best friend? How come I’ve never seen her before?”

“You and I met this summer.” She rolled her eyes “Camz was in Cuba and then when she came back I was already at softball camp. This is the first time I’ve seen her she left.” She explained, continuing to observe her friend. The once tiny girl had surely began to blossom. The older girl smiled proudly. Her little Camz was growing up.

A taller girl who was the definition of “diva” approached the Latina. From the stories she’s heard, she tomboy assumed that must be Dinah, the girl who kept her best friend company when they unfortunately were forced to attend different schools the previous year. The skate punk was always a little worried that the diva would replace her role as best friend but the younger girl had assured her they were _C+L=4Ever!_

“Camz, huh?” Harry nudged the punk, bringing her out of her daze.

“Don’t call her that.” She rolled her eyes.

“Why not?” he whined.

“Only I call her that.” She claimed.

“Possessive, aren’t we?” Teased the blond boy.

“Shut up, Niall.” She huffed as her best friend approached them followed by the diva.

 “When did you get those?” The younger Latina pointed to the pair of glasses resting on her nose.

“This summer.” The skater grumbled. “They’re so ugly.”

“They’re nice.” She smiled sweetly.

“Not they’re not.” She pouted.

“They are.” The younger girl assured.

“I hate them.” The older girl continued scowling. Her friend giggled at her stubbornness.

“I don’t.” She smiled, brown eyes locking on green ones that were only magnified by the crystalline effect of the glass.

The diva cleared her throat, bringing the two out of their intimate world.

“Oh, right!” The younger girl jumped. “Umm… Lolo, this is Dinah.” She introduced.

“Glad to finally meet you.” The brunette nodded. “I’ve heard stories about you.”

“I heard stories ‘bout you too.” She laughed. “Mila never shuts up ‘bout you.” She teased. “Lauren this, Lolo that.”

“DINAH!” The darker haired girl shouted as her cheeks burned a deep shade of red.

“Well, I wish Lauren would tell me more about you.” The shaggy haired boy interrupted.

“Ugh.” The skater groaned in annoyance. “Camz, Harry. Harry, Camz.” She gestured between the two.  “And these idiots,” she continued to motion toward each of the boys she had earlier been with who now stood dumbfounded over the pretty Latina girl in front of them “are, well, besides drooling,” she laughed “Niall, Zayn, Liam, and Louis.”

“Nice to meet you all.” The princess waved shyly.

The group was interrupted by the irritating sound of the bell.

“Looks like we’ve gotta go.” The younger girl sighed. “Do you know where Mr. Cowell’s room is?” She asked the skater.

“Down that hall,” the older girl pointed. “Third door on the left.”

“Ok, thanks Lolo!” The bow smiled, giving the beanie a tight hug, kissing her on the cheek before whispering in her ear “I’ve missed you.”

“We’ll catch up tonight.” The skater mumbled into her hair before pulling away. “Usual spot?”

“Always.” She nodded before grabbing the diva’s wrist as they made their way down the sixth grade hallway. “Bye Lolo!” She called over her shoulder.

The taller girl watched as her friend walked off before returning her attention back to her skate crew.

“Dude! Let me be you!” The curly haired boy complained.

“She does that all the time.” The skater shrugged, brushing it off.

“Ugh! Now I really want to be you!” He groaned in aggravation.

“Let’s go.” said the beanied girl as she punched his arm. “We’re gonna be late for Lovato’s.”

\---

_Bow_

The Latina swung lazily on the tire swing, pink flats brushing the dirt below, twisting her body one way, letting the world spin around her before the tension of the rope slingshot her in the other direction. She inhaled deeply, humming to herself, eyes closed as she waited for her friend to return from softball practice.

She was lost in her own world, completely unaware of the car door slamming shut across the yard, or the soft sound of cleats making their way across the grass. It wasn’t until she felt two hands on her own, holding the swing still, that her eyes fluttered open.

“Hey.” The softball player smirked, leaning down so that their faces were only a few inches apart.

“Hi.” The younger girl blushed. The softball player only smiled, placing a quick kiss on the side of her face.

“How was your first day of middle school?” the older girl asked.

“It was alright.” The Latina shrugged. “But you didn’t tell me you had to change for gym class!”

“You never asked.” The skater shrugged, grabbing her skateboard from the back porch before setting it on the driveway, jumping on.

“Ugh. It was so embarrassing.” The girly girl whined.

The older girl offered a sympathetic smile, “You can always do what I do.”

“What’s that?” The younger girl asked.

“Put your gym shirt on over your shirt then slip your arms in.” The skater explained, acting out her technique as she tried to balance with half of the skateboard in the air. “Switch your shirt up through the neck so you can take it off without having to take anything off.  Your gym shirt should cover your butt so you can slip your shorts off and put your gym shorts on without anyone seeing anything.”

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?!” The princess groaned.

“Again, you never asked.” The skater laughed, skating around the driveway in circles.

The Latina sighed as she swung on the tire pendulum. After a few minutes of silence the older girl looked up from her spot in the driveway, noting the obvious conflict on her young friend’s face, bow drooping to match her downcast eyes.

“Hey…” The skater coaxed, stopping her board with her left foot, hopping off. She quickly jogged over to her sad looking friend. “What’s wrong?”

“I just really don’t like gym.” She sighed.

“Aww, Camz,” the older girl said, placing a hand on the younger girl’s smaller ones. “I know you don’t like sports, but everyone has to take it.”

“No, it’s not that.” The shorter girl sighed, trying to articulate her internal conflict. “I just… I don’t want people to see me.”

The taller girl raised a brow, “I told you, you can just put your shirt…”

“No, Lolo. Not like that.” She cut off. “I mean, I don’t like what I look like.”

“Why not?” The skater asked, taken aback.

“Well…” the Latina hesitated. “Umm, my bum is big, first off.”

The softball player stifled a giggle as her friend obviously looked hurt. “Sorry, continue.”

“And umm, I’m not tall like all the other girls. And I don’t have pretty blue eyes. Or long blonde hair.”

“But you have pretty brown eyes. And long dark hair.” The older girl reasoned.

“But I don’t want poopy brown eyes or dark hair.” She countered back.

“Why not?” green eyes questioned for the second time.

“I don’t know. I just… don’t.” she said defeated.

“Camz,” The brunette said tenderly, playing with her friend’s fingers “You’re perfect just the way you are.”

“Easy for you to say.” The younger girl huffed. “You’re so pretty and all the boys love you.”

The tomboy let out a boisterous laugh. “Boys? You mean the guys I skate with?” She chuckled. “They’re like my brothers! They don’t think I’m pretty, besides, I have these.” She rolled her eyes, pointing to the spectacles on the bridge of her nose. “I look like a bug.”

“No you don’t.” The Latina refuted.

“Not about me.” The tomboy cut her off. “You know all my friends think you’re cute?”

The Latina blushed, shaking her head ‘no.’

“Well, they do.” The older girl continued. “Harry even wanted to hang out with us. He asked me if we wanted to come over after I finished practice.”

The Latina turned even pinker than her bow, unable to speak.

“Do you like him?” The skater prodded.

The princess bit her lip, contemplating the possibility before lifting her gaze to meet her friend. “Don’t think so.”

“Good.” The older girl smiled. “Cause you’re too good for him anyway.” She laughed causing her friend to join in, relaxing as the infectious sound filled her ears.

When the giggling had finally settled, the Latina tucked a stray hair behind her ear as emerald eyes stayed locked on her.

“You’re perfect.” The skater sighed.

“You too.” The Latina responded instantly.

“No really,” the older girl said seriously. “I mean it, Camz.”

“I do too.” The younger girl smiled.


	9. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2 years ago, she wasn’t a little girl anymore.  
> 2 years ago, she would do anything for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 8**

2 years ago, she wasn’t a little girl anymore.

2 years ago, she would do anything for her.

_Bow_

She was officially a teenager, tossing aside the tutus, settling for skirts and high-waisted shorts. The princess had begged her parents to let her continue ordering from the kid’s menu to which they simply chuckled, handing her an adult menu.

The skater quickly excused herself to go to the bathroom, telling her mother not to worry when she offered to accompany her, claiming she wasn’t a baby. When out of sight, she took a detour toward the front of the restaurant, ducking back quickly as she passed their hostess, before stealthily stuffing her hand back into the front pocket of her oversized grey hoodie.

As the tomboy settled back into the booth next to her friend, she smirked, slowly bringing her left hand up to the table, placing a folded page in front of the princesa.

The green eyed girl didn’t think it was possible for her friend’s doe eyes to get any bigger. Her face immediately lit up as she unfolded the packet, tearing open the mini box of crayons. She smiled gratefully, offering the beanied girl a crayon as the two returned their attention to the kid’s menu to play a game of tic-tac-toe.

The first time, the skater won. But after watching her friend’s brow knot in desperation, she let her win the next four games, the excited clapping and heart stopping smile, a win in itself.

Alejandro looked up from his menu after his wife nudged him gently in the side, gesturing to the two girls, lost in the own world. Of course, he should have known. She only wanted the kid’s menu for the activity book, not the food. The parents chuckled, exchanging knowing looks. Somehow the beanied girl knew more about his daughter than he did.

The two had long finished their game of tic-tac-toe, but had continued giggling amongst themselves, doodling in any of the remaining margins as they waited for their food. The Latina scrawled with her magenta crayon, retracing the X’s from their previous game as the punk did the same to the O’s with her green one.

  1. _O. X. O._



The X’s and O’s symbolically meant something to the girly girl. She tilted her head to steal a glance at the older girl, wondering if she thought the same. Their eyes met, her green eyes sparkled as the corners of her mouth turned up. The Latina could have sworn she even saw the skater’s cheeks tint pink before she giggled, returning her attention back to the paper between them.

 

\---  
_Beanie_

2 years ago, she put on a dress.

2 years ago, she would do anything for her.

The beanied girl had no idea how she ended up getting wrangled into this whole situation. _Oh right,_ maybe it was the fact that she just couldn’t say no to those innocent brown eyes that had begged her to go to the 8 th grade dance.

“But Lolo! He asked you. You have to go.” The Latina bat her eyes.

“I don’t want to.” The older girl moaned. “I don’t even like him.”

 “But you like me.” The younger girl mused. “Please. I’ve never seen you in a dress before!”

“Fine.”

Luckily the older girl still had a bit of sanity left to agree to the proposal but under one condition. The darker haired girl would have to take care of everything. If she wanted to see her dressed up, she would have to pick out the dress, the shoes, and do her hair. It wasn’t much of an ultimatum though, she knew it too. The princess would have been happy to do all of those things. She probably would have even asked to do them.

And that is how the beanied girl found herself in a dressing room surrounded by ten abominations of glitter, frill, and girly fabric, all chosen by the bright-eyed girl waiting patiently in the dressing room chair across from her.

“Why can’t you just pick it?” The skater huffed in annoyance.

“Please, Lolo.” The younger Latina begged. “I want to see which one you look best in.”

“None of them.” She rolled her eyes.

 “Loloooo” The bow whined, dragging out the last ‘o.’

“Fine. Just stop with the puppy-dog eyes!” She groaned, grabbing a dress from the hanger.

 The Latina beamed happily, clapping her hands as the skater miserably undressed, wiggling into the new outfit. She held her hands out exasperated before asking expectantly.

“So? What’dya think?”

The Latina scrunched up her nose, shaking her head.

“Next one.” She said simply, holding out her arms to take the discarded dress from her best friend who had already begun to slip into the final garment.

“Camz, this is literally the last dress left.” She warned, her patience wearing thin. “If you don’t like it, I’m not going to…”

“This one.” The younger girl cut her off, beaming. “This is it.”

 ---

The shorter girl beamed proudly as the skater rolled her eyes. Keaton and his parents would be arriving any minute to drive his date to the neighboring middle school. In fact, she probably should be out front waiting, but instead she was on the opposite side of the house, perched uncomfortably on the tire swing, trying not to ruin the ruffles of the dress her best friend had dedicated so much time to picking out.

It was perfect. Well, she was perfect anyway, thought the younger girl. The dress was short, strapless, with ombre coloring spreading from white to green, then green to turquoise blue. It made the skater’s eyes glow like a galaxy. The younger girl thought she couldn’t be more beautiful.

“Camz, why are you staring at me?” The older girl blushed.

“You just look so pretty.” The younger girl blushed equally as red, having been caught.

The punk chuckled. “I don’t do pretty.”

“But you _are_ pretty.” The princess insisted.

“I should probably go soon.” The eighth grader sighed.

“Wait!” The younger girl shot up. “I forgot! There’s one thing missing.”

“What more could you possibly want to add?” The skater groaned. There was already a silver clip in her hair, necklace resting on her collarbones, and a bracelet on each wrist. She felt so girly already.

“Just hold on!” The younger girl giggled, climbing up the ladder of the treehouse. The older girl could hear shuffling from above her, followed by the closing of one of the doors of the small cabinet they had added a few years ago. What could she possibly be looking for? The last she checked, there were only some old coloring books and dolls in there.

“Here.” The smaller girl grinned, holding out a box wrapped in pink wrapping paper. _Of course. It was the only acceptable color._

The skater took it with confusion, carefully unwrapping its contents. Lifting the lid, she couldn’t help but smile.

“I figured I’d cut you a break.” The younger girl teased, winking at the older girl who removed the shoes gratefully.

“Thanks, Camz.” She smiled, slipping on the new green Converse. They were much more comfortable than the silver heels she had quickly kicked off and surprisingly they matched her dress perfectly.

“ _Now_ you can go.” The bowed girl laughed, holding out a hand to help the older girl off the swing before pulling her completely to her, wrapping both arms around her best friend, squeezing tightly.

“I still don’t want to.” The skater mumbled into the shorter girl’s hair.

“I don’t really want you to either.” The younger girl nuzzled into the taller girl’s neck. “I didn’t really think this one through.” She giggled before tiptoe-ing to place a quick kiss on her friend’s cheek, slightly closer to her mouth that intended. Both girls pulled apart, blushing profusely.

“Umm. I should go.” The brunette cleared her throat.

“Yeah.” The darker haired girl said timidly. “I’ll meet you back here after?”

“Definitely.” The skater nodded. She sighed, turning back to her own residence. This was going to be a long evening. 

\---

_Beanie_

The girly girl brushed her hair over her shoulder, letting out a whine. The skater chuckled. The two had settled into their haven, nestled together in a mess of blankets and pillows. The skater had returned to her dutifully, as promised, changing quickly into her more comfortable attire of a simple t-shirt and running shorts. The younger lay in front of her in a pink tank top with her back to the skater, one arm tucked under her head, the other holding Puppy loosely to her chest.

“You’re so needy.” The now beanied girl teased, before reaching out to run her fingers through the younger girl’s soft locks. She hummed in approval. The green-eyed girl’s fingers combed slowly through her hair, nails occasionally grazing down her exposed shoulder and back, eliciting small goosebumps on the girl’s tan skin.

After a few minutes of silence she finally spoke up, turning to give her attention her best friend.

“So, how was it?” Brown eyes asked curiously.

“Ehh.” The skater shrugged. “It was alright. Nothing special.”

“Did he kiss you?” The bow asked, unsure if she really wanted to know the answer.

“Thankfully no!” The beanie let out, relieved.

“Did he want to?” She raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t know.” She shrugged again.

There was a pause. Working up the courage to ask, she nervously let out in one breath. “Didyouwanttokisshim?”

It didn’t faze the older though, who shrugged yet again. “Not really.”

The princess let out a sigh of relief. “So you don’t like him?” She clarified.

The skater rolled her eyes. “You know I don’t.”

The younger girl smiled and nodded. “Did you have fun at least?”

The shining green eyes sparkled, “I would’ve had more fun if you were there.” She said cheesily.

“Shut up.” The princess laughed, smacking the skater with her pink pillow.

“Oh, you’re so dead, Cabello.” The older girl grinned, reaching for her own checkered print pillow as her best friend quickly stood up, running to the other side of the treehouse, squealing half in delight and half in fear.

The green-eyed girl let out a boisterous laugh at her friend cowering in the corner before chucking the pillow at the girl, doubling over in laughter.

The younger girl did nothing but grab the offending weapon, clutching it to her chest like some sort of shield. Emerald eyes glinted before making their way to stand directly in front of brown ones. The skater walked over, placing an arm on either side of the smaller girl, trapping her with a grin.

Leaning forward, she ghosted her lips over the younger girl’s ear, whispering “Gotcha.”

The princess felt chills run up her spine. She quickly turned her head, whispering back “You’ve always had me.” The skater could feel her friend’s breath on her lips. She blinked, the intensity of the situation setting is as the two stepped apart.

“You’re corny.” The brunette teased, trying to recompose herself. “Come on. Let’s go to sleep.” She said, holding out a hand which the younger girl immediately took, lacing their fingers together as they made their way back to their nest.

“Goodnight, Camz.” The skater whispered, not bothering to unlace their fingers. The princess brought their hands up to her lips.

“Goodnight, Lolo.” She whispered back, kissing the back of the older girl’s hand.

As they lay there, the skater couldn’t help but smile. _“You’ve always had me.”_ The Latina had declared to her, jokingly. Or maybe not so jokingly, the skater hoped. _And you’re the only one who’ll ever have me._ She promised.


	10. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 1 year ago, she had an epiphany.   
> 1 year ago, she was absolutely, utter head over heels in love with her best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 9**

1 year ago, she had an epiphany.

1 year ago, she was absolutely, utter head over heels in love with her best friend.

_Beanie_

The skater wasn’t sure at what point she had fallen completely in love with her best friend. She just knew that she had. Maybe it wasn’t so much a matter of when, but a matter of how. Maybe it was how every little thing just managed to add up. Every quirk. Every detail. All the things that her best friend was and meant to her. She loved each aspect all together. Completely.

What she didn’t love, was being separated from her best friend. Her Camz. She didn’t like this new school. She didn’t like being a freshman, the bottom of the social ladder. Everything was so overwhelming. Suddenly, she was hyperaware of everything happening around her. She felt out of place.

The tomboy felt a body collide with her own, shocking her out of her daze as her body suddenly made contact with the lockers.

“Out of the way, freshman.” A blonde girl grumbled, shoving past her.

_No, she definitely didn’t like this place._

She rolled her eyes, reaching into her back pocket to take out her phone. Her parents thought she was old enough now to carry the new responsibility. It also helped that Camila had received her own a few weeks prior.

“Today already sucks.” She typed out, sighing as the warning bell rang. Dragging her combat boots, the skater made her way to her next class. It was going to be a long day.

\---

_Bow_

She was terrified. Not of the feelings, per say, the feelings she liked. But more so, she was terrified that in her role of best friend, she had always been secretly yearning for something more. She just never realized it until now.

This was the 28th day in a row that the princess had received a text from Grumpy Lolo complaining about how miserable she was at school. At first the younger girl thought it was just the skater being her punkish, slightly cynical self. But after a week of the same bitter Lolo texts, she began to grow more and more concerned.

As usual, warily of her teachers’ watchful eyes, the younger Latina stealthily texted back words of encouragement in an attempt to alleviate her friend’s annoyance, always ending with a promise to meet at their tree house after school and a “ily J” to seal the deal.  

The skater would always respond back with the same “Love you too.”

At some point, the line between a friendly “love you” and real “I love you” started blur. The bow wondered if the beanie would ever pick up on the deeper meaning of her responses. How would she react? Or if she already did, why hadn’t she done anything? Was it because she didn’t feel the same way but didn’t want to hurt her feelings? They were still best friends, after all.

When did things get so complicated? It used to be so simple. They were just C+L. 4Ever.

\---

The two friends were lying on their stomachs, side by side, completing their designated homework assignments up in the natural hideaway. The sound of pencils scratching away at the notebook paper echoed in the comforting silence. After a few minutes only the sound of the bow’s pencil, scrawling alone was heard, followed by a _plop._

The younger girl glanced over to see a droplet resting on the skater’s notebook, the beanied girl rubbing her eye, sniffing quickly.

“Lolo?” The younger girl hesitated.

The older girl averted her eyes “I’m fine.” She mumbled, brushing the offending liquid off her notebook, returning her attention back to the page.

The younger Latina sighed, looking down at her own work. “You don’t have to hold it in around me.” She whispered.

The skater was silent so the bow continued.

“You don’t have to pretend. We’re in a safe place.” The darker hair girl assured.

More silence.

“Scream.” She directed, putting her pencil down, looking directly at the skate punk. 

“What?” the beanied girl breathed, taken aback.

“I said, scream.” The bow asserted again. “Let it out. You need to.”

The older girl rolled her eyes, avoiding the younger girl’s brown eyes. “No.”

“Do it.” The princess said with determination, rolling over to face her entire body towards the green eyed girl. “Scream.”

“No.” The older Latina argued back stubbornly.

Finally, the younger girl pushed the older girl onto her back, crawling on top of her friend, settling on her waist. Brown eyes bore into crystal green with fortitude before lifting her hands. The skater read her mind instantly.

“Stop it.” She struggled, trying to hold back her laughter as the younger girl’s pastel fingernails began attacking her sides. “Don’t!” The older girl begged. “Camila!” She continued attempting to push the younger girl off her, but the princess held fast. Soon those tears of laughter began to change; there was a switch in her tone. And then, just as the princess has hoped, her best friend began to cry. The Latina didn’t want to watch her friend cry, but she knew she needed it. And so she held her. She held her best friend’s crying body as she began to shake.

“It’s ok.” She cooed, “Let it out.” She could feel her friend grasping at the edge of her shirt, burying her face in her chest, sobbing.

“Shh. It’s ok. Let it out. I’m here.” She reassured, slowly stroking her hair. “You are strong and beautiful and everything I’ve always wished I was brave enough to be.” The younger girl rambled.

“Oh, shut up.” The green eyed girl sniffed.

“I’m serious, Lolo.” The Latina emphasized, wiping her friend’s tear-stained cheeks. “I’ve always looked up to you.”

“That’s because I’m taller.” The older girl deflected with a dry sense of humor.

“Not what I meant.” The younger girl hushed.

“Sorry. I just…” She wasn’t used to being vulnerable.

“Talk to me.” The bow urged.

“I don’t know. High school just sucks.” She rambled. “And this one girl, Cece, always picks on me. I don’t even know what I did to make her hate me. She just does. I know that I’m not that popular. I hang out with mostly guys. I don’t dress that girly, but am I ugly? Is that why?” The beanied girl hesitated.

The bow shook her head rapidly from side to side, “Impossible.” She encouraged, urging the older girl continue.

“I just hate it.” The skater sighed. “I don’t want to be there. And I miss you. I just want to be with you all the time. But I can’t because you’re not there. And it’s just lonely. I need my best friend. Camz, I need you.”

The younger girl’s eyes soften, taking her best friend’s hands in her own smaller pair.

“I’ll always be here for you.” She assured. “I’ll always be yours. I promise, Lolo.”

The older girl sniffled again in response. The younger girl had never seen someone as beautiful as her best friend looked at that moment. Her brown hair flowed down her back messily, her beanie resting lopsided on her head, green eyes puffy, nose slightly red, and everything about her was simply perfect. This was her Lolo. And she loved her.

“Lolo,” the younger girl whispered as their eyes met. “Can I kiss you?”

The skater nodded, sitting up properly. Their lips met with hesitancy, both girls eyes fluttering shut. The kiss was light and innocent, both friends unsure of what exactly to do.

When they pulled apart, the princess turned away, blushing bashfully as the skater sat with a goofy grin on her face.

“Camz?” The punk cleared her throat.

“Hmm.” The girly girl blushed.

“Thanks.” The skater blushed back, fingers tracing her mouth, reveling in the tingling sensation that lingered on her lips.

“Any time.” The bow said, biting her lower lip.

\---

_Beanie_

Any time came sooner than she thought. Not that she was complaining.

Any time came every night after school, tucked away in secret. Any time came with innocent glances, followed by shy giggles and blushing cheeks. Any time brought thousands of butterflies and stomach flips.

“Lolo?” The younger girl questioned, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. The two had scampered off to the tree house on a warm Saturday night after the skater had finished softball practice.

“Yeah, Camz?” The skater replied, leaning in for the third time that night.

“What is this?” The darker haired girl asked, causing the older girl to pull back.

“What do you mean?” She raised an eyebrow.

“Well… like…” the princess hesitated, doe eyes sparkling. “What are we?”

The punk sighed. “We’re best friends, of course.”

“But…” The younger girl continued. “We kiss.”

“We do.” The older girl confirmed.

“A lot.” The Latina added.

The older girl nodded.

“But is that wrong?” Brown eyes questioned.

“Does it feel wrong?” Green eyes inquired back.

“No.” The bow shook her head.

“Then it’s not wrong.” The beanied girl settled.

Her best friend smiled in response, lacing their fingers together before placing a gentle kiss on the older girl’s nose, then her cheek, then her lips. _No, this was definitely not wrong. In fact, it felt so very much right._


	11. Bows and Beanies – Chapter 10 (End)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 10 years ago, she changed her life forever.  
> 9 years ago, she was her best friend.  
> 8 years ago, she felt safe with her.  
> 7 years ago, she trusted her.  
> 6 years ago, she made her laugh.  
> 5 years ago, she stood by her.  
> 4 years ago, she looked at her in awe.  
> 3 years ago, she made her feel beautiful.  
> 2 years ago, she was hers.  
> 1 year ago, she kissed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter: @heyjayyay  
> Tumblr: heyjayyay.tumblr.com  
> Instagram: @heyjayyay

**Bows and Beanies – Chapter 10 (End)**

10 years ago, she changed her life forever.

9 years ago, she was her best friend.

8 years ago, she felt safe with her.

7 years ago, she trusted her.

6 years ago, she made her laugh.

5 years ago, she stood by her.

4 years ago, she looked at her in awe.

3 years ago, she made her feel beautiful.

2 years ago, she was hers.

1 year ago, she kissed her.

_Beanie_

It was meant to be a monumental occasion. A girl only has her Sweet 16 once in a lifetime. But the idea of a tiara or other girly things really set the skater on edge. After arguing for hours with her mother, the two had finally called a truce, mainly due to Mike’s annoyance in the matter. They settled on a simple white dress, with a pair of black converse. In exchange, she could still wear a grey beanie and denim jacket.

 _Come over. The apocalypse has ended._ The skater texted. Less than a minute later, her bedroom door was being flung open and a blur of pastel colors collided with her body.

“I could practically hear you yelling from my window.” The bowed girl teased.

“Shut up.” The punk rolled her eyes. “My mother is the worst person on the planet.” She groaned.

“She’s not that bad.” Her best friend consoled.

“Not that bad?” She gestured to her outfit. “Are you serious?”

“You look nice.” The princess complimented.

“I hate dressing up.” The tomboy grumbled. “Especially for other people.”

“You dressed up for me.” The bowed girl noted, reminding her of the eighth grade dance.

“Yeah, well, you’re an exception.” She shrugged before peering at the doorway, noting that the coast was clear, before quickly pecking the shorter girl on the lips.

“Lolo” the younger girl giggled, struggling to get out of the older girl’s arm that were now wrapped around her waist. “Come on. We’ve gotta go.”

“I don’t want to.” She huffed.

“Don’t you want to see what I got you?” The younger Latina tempted.

“I don’t want anything..” The taller girl mumbled, burying her face into the girl’s neck before uttering. “Just you.”

“You’re cheesy.” The younger girl laughed, giving her friend a playful shove.

“Yeah…” she admitted shamelessly with a playful grin across her lips. Her soft cheek was met with a pair of pink lips.

“Just come on.” She rolled her eyes, holding her hand out. The skater smiled, lacing their fingers together as they made their way downstairs.

\---  
The party had gone a lot smoother than she expected, her mother only annoyed her a handful of times. The rest of the guests had gone home and the skater, now changed back into a pair of shorts and baggy shirt, was perched on the tires swing as she waited for her friend to return from her own wardrobe switch.

 “I’m back.” A voice called behind her after 20 minutes.

“What took you so long?” She laughed, turning. Her jaw dropped. “No way.” Camila was now standing in front of her in a pair of acid washed, high-waisted denim shorts, a pair of red Chuck Taylors, a loose fitted tank top, and a dark green beanie with a green bow embroidered on the rim. It almost looked like she had stolen the skater’s attire.

The green-eyed girl was so enthralled with the sight in front of her that she didn’t even notice that the girl had a long board under her arm.

“Camz,” she finally spoke. “What are you doing?”

“Correction” the younger girl smiled, “you should be asking what are _we_ doing.”

“Ok…” the skater gave a skeptical look. “What are _we_ doing?”

“We’re going to the skate park.” The princess explained, pulling the birthday girl toward the street, dropping the long board to the ground.

“What?!” She was completely flabbergasted. “When did you... how did you… what?”

The princess laughed at the skater’s loss of coherent speech. “This is part of my present to you! I learned to skateboard for you!” She grinned.

“ _Part_ of?” the beanied girl raised a questioning eyebrow.

“Yeah, the other part is where I beat you there and you eat my dust!” She laughed before pushing off, gliding down the street. The skater hardly had time to react. She grabbed her own board from the garage and sped off after her best friend.

\---

_Bow_

The two had spent the evening skating at the park, granted the original skater had mostly done tricks while the newbie skated around her on relatively flat ground. Regardless, it was still more than she could have ever hoped for. The sun had set at this point and the two were sitting on their boards, facing each other, playing with one another’s fingers.

“I still can’t believe you can skate now.” The 16 year old beamed.

“Barely.” The younger girl chuckled, wiggling her butt to make the board slide from side to side.

“Still,” she now laced their fingers together. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me” the princess teased. “That just means I’ll be tagging along and annoying you more often.”

“You could never annoy me.” She stated honestly.

“Cheesy.” She laughed, scrunching up her nose, the action earning her a kiss from the skater on the exact facial feature. 

“Says the girl who came up with C+L=4ever!” the punk shot back.

“Hey! I was like… 10 when I came up with that.” She tried to defend before her eyes lit up.  “Speaking of! I almost forgot. I have one more present for you.”

“Camz, come on! No! You already…”she tried to protest but was cut off.

“No, close your eyes.” She commanded, unlinking their hands.

“Fine.” She huffed, green eyes fluttering shut. She heard the girl across from her shuffle closer. “It’s not a kiss it is?” she teased, puckering her lips.

“No.” her friend defended as the skater felt something being stretched on her head. “Open.”

The little Latina had switched out the skater’s beanie and replaced it with her own. The skater pat her head questioningly. “For me?”

“Yeah, now take it off.” She directed.

“Why’d you even put it on me then?” The older girl mused.

“Just do it, Lolo!” the brown-eyed girl whined slightly.

“I don’t get it.” She raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“Look closer.” The younger pressed.

The skater turned the fabric around in her hands.

“I still don’t get it.” She rubbed the back of her neck.

“Think outside the box.” She urged. “Well, actually, more like inside the box… inside the beanie.” She divulged.

“Oh!” She laughed. “Why didn’t you say so?” The skater folded down the edge of the beanie only to find that C+L=4ever was embroidered on the inside rim, on the other side of where the bow embroidery was.

“Wow! Thanks, Camz!” She smiled, pulling her best friend in for a tight hug. When the two finally pulled apart, the younger girl continued smirking.

 “What?” the skater raised an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me there’s more.” She mused. The darker haired girl only bit her lip and the punk again returned to investigating the item. Inside the beanie, there was a tag that, at first looked like simple washing instructions. But upon further inspection, she noticed that it there were words on it, addressed to her.

“How do you even get this done? Like… where do they even do this?” the skater was baffled.

“Just read it. Please” brown eyes coaxed.

“Lolo” the punk began narrating.

“No! Not out loud.” Her best friend blushed.

“Ok.”

_Lolo,_

_Happy Sweet 16! Thank you for always being the beanie to my bow. I can’t believe we’ve been best friends for over a decade. But I want us be more than that because to me, you’re my everything. Look up._

The skater blinked before lifting her gaze to meet a sparkling pool of chocolate brown.

“Lauren Michelle Jauregui,”

“Present” the punk teased, raising her hand as if she were taking attendance. The darker haired girl shot her a look. “Ok, sorry. Continue.”

“Like I was saying, Lolo, you’re really special to me and I just don’t think that calling you my ‘best friend’ is going to cut it anymore. So, I wanted to ask you. Umm…” the younger girl cleared her throat, hesitantly. “Will you be my girlfriend?” She blushed.

The skater practically leapt at her, connecting their lips. “Of course” she gasped when they broke apart for air.

“Best present ever?” the princess smiled.

“Definitely.” The punk grinned.


End file.
